November is National
Veterans and Military Families Month. Americans across the country
will join and celebrate our nation’s heroes for the entire month of November
and not just on Veterans Day. This month recognizes, acknowledges, and honors
the service, sacrifices, and contributions of Veterans and military families
for their courage and commitment to our Nation. The VA has put together a calendar
of highlighted events sponsored by the Agency and stakeholders for this month's commemoration. VA medical centers and community based
outpatient clinics will also hold open houses.
As a national program
office, the VA Office of Health Equity
(OHE) has aligned our programming and is highlighting additional activities
for National
Veterans and Military Families Month. It is the mission of OHE to champion health
equity issues for Veterans. Although we do this every day of the year, our
November announcements highlight specific programming that we encourage
you to attend as we honor our heroes on Veterans Day and throughout the month.
VA medical centers and community based outpatient clinics are
holding open houses during the month of November to commemorate National
Veterans and Military Families Month. In support of this, the VA Office of Health Equity
(OHE) is pleased to announce the virtual open house of the
Health Equity Hub in the VA Virtual Medical Center
(VA-VMC).
The Health Equity Hub is a dedicated space in the VA-VMC—a state of the art virtual VA hospital and
online collaborative learning environment for Veterans, VA staff, and
stakeholders. The Health Equity Hub was developed by OHE and partners and
provides a persistent, online, virtual world where Veterans and others can
meet, interact, and learn with others to improve their overall health and well-being, especially as it relates to social and environmental factors that may place some
Veterans at greater risk for health and health care disparities.
OHE Chief Officer Uchenna Uchendu, MD and Regional Director
of Specialty Care Center of Innovation (WEST) Rosalyn Scott, MD, MSHA discussed
the VA-VMC at the September 2017 Focus
on Health Equity and Action Cyberseminar. The archived recording of
the session—Promoting
Health Equity with the Virtual Medical Center—is available on the VA HSR&D
website.
The Health Equity Hub officially launches later this
year. Be among the first to see the progress, and weigh in before the launch, just in time for National
Veterans and Military Families Month by either clicking the image or button
above.
Health equity related partnered evaluation activities are
instrumental in increasing understanding of the distribution of diagnosed
health conditions, mortality, and healthcare quality for vulnerable Veteran
groups. The current Focus
on Health Equity and Action Cyberseminar will provide updated data on
equity and quality of care issues for Veterans in the VA healthcare system and
findings related to top VA priorities. In addition, presenters will discuss
activities and tactics that can be implemented to ensure all Veterans fairly
receive the best quality of care irrespective of vulnerabilities and other
determinants of care that negatively affect Veteran health and well-being.
Advancing
Health Equity Through Partnered Evaluation and Action
Thursday,
November 16, 2017
3:00 –
4:00 PM EST
Confirmed
Speakers
-
Susan Frayne, MD,
MPH
VA Palo Alto Health Care System, Palo Alto, CA
-
Katherine Hoggatt,
PhD
VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Los Angeles, CA
-
Uchenna S.
Uchendu, MD
Chief Officer, Office of Health Equity, VA Central Office, Washington, DC
Background
Resources
Office of Health Equity. (2016). National
Veteran Health Equity Report—FY2013. US Department of Veterans Affairs,
Washington, DC. Available online at http://www.va.gov/healthequity/NVHER.asp.
Related
Cyberseminars
-
Chronic
Health Conditions Among Vulnerable Veterans: Current Research and Action – June 29, 2017 (Breland, Uchendu, Washington)
-
Using
VA Data to Characterize Health and Healthcare Disparities in VA – June 20, 2017 (Washington)
-
State
of VHA Care for Vulnerable Veterans –
January 26, 2017 (Frayne, Otoole, Saechao, Saliba, Uchendu, Washington, Yano)
Many Veterans participate in clinical trials to continue their service and commitment to fellow Service Members and the country. Diversity in clinical trials is vital in ensuring that medical products and devices are safe and effective for everyone. The VA
Office of Health Equity (OHE) and FDA
Office of Minority Health (OMH) are joining forces in time for National
Veterans and Military Families Month with related programming
for Veterans, their families, and stakeholders.
The FDA OMH will host a free
one hour webinar featuring VA OHE Chief Officer Uchenna S. Uchendu, MD. Join Dr.
Uchendu as she discusses the importance of Veteran health equity and diversity
in clinical trials. Register now and stay tuned for additional activities for engaging Veterans in clinical trials.
Health
Equity and Diversity in Clinical Trials
Monday,
November 20, 2017
2:00 –
3:00 PM EST
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